Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit and Working Tax Credit

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she plans to take to help ensure that people who will stop receiving the £20 uplift to universal credit and working tax credits are able to access sufficient food sources.

David Rutley: We take the issue of food insecurity seriously, which is why we added internationally used food security questions to the Family Resources Survey in 2019/20 and published the data in March this year. These questions remain in the survey and will allow us to track food security over time. In April this year we increased the value of Healthy Start Food Vouchers from £3.10 to £4.25, helping eligible low income households buy basic foods like milk, fruit and vitamins. We are investing up to £220m in the Holiday Activities and Food programme, which has been expanded to every Local Authority across England. Participating children are benefitting from a range of support, including healthy and nutritious meals as well as fun and engaging activities covering the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays in 2021. There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced, including the success of the vaccine rollout. With record vacancies, our focus is on helping people back into work. This approach is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment, particularly where it is full-time, in substantially reducing the risks of poverty. This Government is wholly committed to supporting those on low incomes, and continues to do so through many measures, including by increasing the living wage, and by spending over £111 billion on welfare support for people of working age in 2021/22.

Food Poverty: Pupils

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of food insecurity amongst school children since the start of the covid-19 outbreak.

David Rutley: We have not made an assessment of this kind. Issues of food insecurity amongst school children fall within the remit of the Department for Education so assessments such as this would be their responsibility.